My son was accepted into the Engineering Program, Honors College, and has applied to the Blount Scholars Program. He received an invitation to interview in person in January and we plan to take him down there to do that. Does anybody know how competitive it is to be accepted to Blount? Do all applicants get invited to interview? How many interviewees are actually accepted?
My son is really excited about the Blount program. Everything about it appeals to him. He has always done extremely well in his English and Social Science classes, so having the opportunity for a liberal arts minor was very attractive to him. When he read all the information about the program, he felt like he found his tribe. I don’t want him to be disappointed if he doesn’t get in, so any information about how competitive it really is would be helpful to help set expectations.
I’m sorry I don’t have an answer, but wanted to tag along on the question. We visited campus a couple of weeks ago, and my son is also really excited about Blount–I could have written your second paragraph! When we were on campus, we had the opportunity to meet with Dr. Whiting (director of the program) and if I recall correctly, it sounds like they take around 100 (maybe 120?) students each year–I have no clue on how many apply though.
I think you should have a good chance. I believe also that if you are out of state you can interview via Skype so that you don’t have to make a separate trip to interview in person. You could check with Dr. Whiting.
@Colorado19and22 Is your son going to go do the interview in January? My son had the option to do a phone or skype interview, but he’s actually looking forward to the visit to get a chance to meet more of the other students.
@elodyCOH My son hasn’t gotten the application done yet–we just visited 2 weeks ago and he wasn’t sure about Blount until the visit. I think he’d be willing to come out of he gets an invite–is it a particular weekend?
@Colorado19and22 It is January 18, the Friday before MLK day.
A few other questions about Blount?
People already have interviews set up? I thought the deadline was December 15? D19 wasn’t planning to do her application until Thanksgiving break.
To repeat OP’s question: Does anyone know the numbers? What I mean is how many apply versus how many are admitted.
Are you required to accept? D19 isn’t sure she wants to join Blount, as it might be too much work to fit into her schedule. She was planning to use the interview as a way of deciding if Blount is for her. But if you’re required to accept, she can’t do that.
Would this conflict with UFE and RRS? There’s so many programs at Bama, it’s hard to decide which to pursue. UFE is a long shot (very few winners, if I recall correctly), so she might as well apply to see if she can get in.
@gusmahler I can’t answer all of your questions, but my DS is also interested in RRS, and when we visited campus last month he specifically asked about whether it would be possible to do Blount and RRS. The response he got was that it is possible, but can be challenging to make sure you have the time to devote to each program and the room in the 4-year schedule to accommodate the double minor, as both Blount and RRS result in minors. That’s the way I understood it anyway.
Late, but I got into Blount easily after being interviewed about a day before. They’re looking for people who really want to be there and creative thinkers, not just academic juggernauts and gunners. Even though I had a 3.65 GPA on Bama’s scale and a 34 ACT, they did not look at those at all.
@apost12 My son got in, too. He’s really excited.